Joycean Soiree: James Joyce's Feisty Females

Join us for an evening discussing James Joyce's influential masterpiece, Ulysses, in-store at Gertrude & Alice. The Prankqueans, a collective of Irish Australian female creatives, will take you on a journey through turn-of the century Dublin, exploring the women in Joyce's life and writing. 

WHEN: Friday, 13th June 2025, at Gertrude & Alice Cafe Bookstore; please arrive at 6.30pm for a prompt 7pm start.

TICKETS: 

Admission: $25.00 (excluding external fees). Your ticket includes a drink on arrival and nibbles during the evening.

About the event:

Every year on 16 June the renowned Irish writer, James Joyce is celebrated around the world. This is the date on which the events in his seminal novel, Ulysses take place. The original Bloomsday - June 16, 1904 – was chosen by Joyce as it was when he and Nora Barnacle who would eventually become his wife had their first romantic date. It was named Bloomsday as a way of referring to the novel’s main protagonist Leopold Bloom. 

Over the weekend of 13 – 15 June the Prankqueans (a collective of Irish Australian female creatives) and friends look forward to transporting audiences to turn of the century Dublin via participatory readings, music and events that will take place around Bondi and Waverley to celebrate this iconic work of literary fiction. 

Our inaugural Festival event at Gertrude and Alice on 13 June will take attendees on a journey through the women in Joyce’s life and writing. This book was banned twice in Australia (1929, 1941) due to its sexual themes and its treatment of explicitly female sexual desire. It features many feisty females as will be shown in extracts from ‘Ulyssses’ that are included in the program. We will also look at Joyce’s influence on female writers such as the acclaimed Irish novelist Mary Morrissey who will read from her award-winning book Penelope Unbound. This engaging novel may be a work of fiction but it draws from meticulous research Morrissy conducted into Norah Barnacle, James Joyce and their circle. A Girl is a Half-formed thing by Eimear McBride and acclaimed Australian novelist Gabrielle Carey’s book James Joyce, a Life will also be briefly discussed in this vein. Irish Australian poet and Prankquean Anne Casey will offer poetry inspired by Joyce’s work. The evening will feature music inspired by Joyce’s feisty women and attendees can expect to enjoy light refreshments at its conclusion.

About Ulysses:

Following the events of one single day in Dublin, the 16th of June 1904, and what happens to the characters Stephen Dedalus, Leopold Bloom and his wife Molly, Ulysses is a monument to the human condition. It has survived censorship, controversy and legal action, and even been deemed blasphemous, but remains an undisputed modernist classic: ceaselessly inventive, garrulous, funny, sorrowful, vulgar, lyrical and ultimately redemptive. It confirms Joyce's belief that literature 'is the eternal affirmation of the spirit of man'

About The Prankqueans:

Founded in 2019, The Prankqueans are an ensemble of artists inspired by ancient Celtic mythology to celebrate all things female and Irish Australian. Featuring acclaimed writers, musicians, singer-songwriters and performing artists, every show offers a theme explored through the careful curation of music, dance, poetry, prose and drama.

Audiences can look forward to an immersive, emotive and highly entertaining experience inspired by the beauty of the Irish language melding ancient Celtic culture with modern Irish literature. The Prankqueans have performed at prestigious venues including the State Library of New South Wales, the Irish Embassy in Canberra, the Powerhouse Arts Centre in Casula and the Gaelic Club in Surry Hills.

About Gertrude & Alice Cafe Bookstore

Rated as one of the top 10 bookstores in the world by National Geographic, Gertrude & Alice Cafe Bookstore is an oasis for writers, readers, and coffee lovers. Books overflow from the shelves of their store, featuring a mix of new, second-hand, antiquarian and rare books. Stay a while & enjoy some home made chai, amazing coffee, and unearth a book treasure or two. Read more about the bookstore's story here, and about the real Gertrude & Alice here.